


Sledgehammer

by ladyofreylo



Series: 80s song fics [5]
Category: Girls (TV), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: 80s song fic, Adam Sackler sings, Adam's an uncle, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Baby, Child, F/M, HEA, Happy Ending, Love Story, Peter Gabriel - Freeform, Romance, Sample from Girls, infant, no pregnancy but mentions Sample
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:21:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26287909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyofreylo/pseuds/ladyofreylo
Summary: It's 5 am.Rey's neighbor, whom she has not met, is sawing and singing loudly.  He turns out to be a shirtless hottie named Adam Sackler with a love for carpentry and 80s music.  Can he be her Sledgehammer?  Will she call his name?  Not if he bashes a hole in her bedroom wall.
Relationships: Rey (Star Wars)/Adam Sackler, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: 80s song fics [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1878508
Comments: 32
Kudos: 107
Collections: RFR Songfic Challenge





	Sledgehammer

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my reader, flavorofkylo, for the help.

Was it really 5 am? Rey opened her eyes to listen to the sound of sawing in the apartment next door. It wasn’t a mechanical saw but a real saw, like a thing with teeth that was being dragged back and forth on a piece of wood. Her bedroom apparently lined up with her neighbor’s living room. And he was sawing at 5 in the morning.

Rey had just moved into the old house, which had been split into three apartments, last week. She hadn’t really paid much attention to the neighbor next to her on the top floor. He hadn’t been around when she moved in and seemed to keep different hours than her. Graduate classes had begun and Rey was on the go herself. The only thing she knew about him was that he was male and lived next door.

The early morning sawing was something new.

Rey crawled out of bed in her shorts and tank top, peed, brushed her teeth, and washed her face. Then she stomped out of her apartment and walked a couple of steps down the hall. She banged on the door. At 5 am.

The sawing stopped. The door swung open and an apparition with goggles appeared.

It was tall, shirtless, covered with wood dust, and had big gloves on. It held a saw. It wore the strangest eyewear—giant swim goggles—and looked like an exotic fish with a small goatee. Or maybe a big-eyed bug with dark hair.

The bug smiled broadly and waved a gloved paw.

Rey took a step back. “Uh, hi,” she murmured, staring at the person in front of her.

“Oh, hi, hi, hi.” He pulled his goggles up to the top of his head to reveal friendly brown eyes. “I didn’t know anybody lived next door. You must have just moved in.”

Rey shifted her weight to one hip. “It’s five in the morning.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He turned around to look inside his apartment. “I’m working on a thing.”

Rey looked around him but couldn’t see much. “Well, all right. But I was trying to sleep.”

He leaned against the door frame. “Yeah, I…” He tugged off a glove with his teeth, wiped his hand on his leg, and put it out for Rey to shake. “Adam Sackler.”

“Rey Johnson.” She took his big, moist paw in her hand and shook it lightly.

“I’ll, uh, do something else for a while.” He paused. “Unless you’re up.”

“I’m not up,” Rey said.

“Okay, all right.” He leaned out farther. Rey thought he might fall into the hallway. 

She had nothing else to say. He rocked back and forth, swinging inside and out of the doorway.

“I’ll see you,” Rey said.

“I’ll creep you later,” Adam said.

Rey stared at him. “Creep me?”

“I meant _see_ you later,” he amended and gave a little wave before shutting the door.

<>

Speaking of being a creep, Rey found herself watching her neighbor at odd moments for the next few days. When she heard his door open, she peeked out to see him thundering down the long set of steps to the front hallway and leaping off the last five with long arms raised as if to take flight. She peeped him when he climbed up three a time with a backpack slung on his back. He roared by her door on the way to his apartment. She had no idea why she found him so fascinating. He was a tall, rather skinny dude with a cap of dark hair that fell in his face. He sported some dark facial hair at the tip of his chin and on his lip.

She frequently heard him hammering and sawing and playing slightly out of tune guitar chords. He seemed to be learning the song “Love Shack.” He strummed along and howled the words in different keys.

Then he switched to singing along with the actual song until Rey thought she would lose her fucking mind. She was trying to write a paper for an impossible class, and he was singing, kind of. “Wailing” might be a better description.

She gave up, shut her laptop, and walked down the short hall.

Adam opened after a couple of sharp raps. He had no shirt on and was covered with a light sheen of sweat.

“Hi, neighbor Rey.”

“Adam,” she said, gritting her teeth. “I’m trying to write a paper. Perhaps you could turn the music down a bit.”

He made a big show of looking offended. “It’s Love Shack, bay-hey-bee,” he half sang, half shouted. “Love Shack, bay-beee, Love Shack. That’s where it’s at. Can’t deny the love shack.” His voice fell to a deep bass note like the original singer.

“I can and I must deny the love shack.” Rey swiped her forehead. “I have to write a paper.”

He leaned against the doorway again and crossed one leg over the other. “Can I help you? Get it done faster and then we can sing.” He hummed the tune again in a rich baritone.

“Doubt it,” Rey said.

“Hey, try me,” Adam countered.

“My paper appears to be turning into an argument for why Ophelia needs to meet Hamlet at the love shack, bay-hey-bee.” Rey glared at Adam. “Because that’s all I can think about.”

Adam chortled in glee. “Get thee to the love shack: why wouldst thou be a  
breeder of sinners?”

Rey stared at him. “You know the lines?”

“Hamlet? Sure,” he said. “I’m an actor.”

“Not carpentry?”

“No, no.” He scratched his nose and gazed at her for a moment. He pressed his lips together. “Shit, I’m too fucking noisy. Shit. I’m sorry. Yeah, sorry, kid. I don’t mean to fuck you up. I’ll shut it down.”

Rey held his gaze. “Thanks.”

“Got it.” He sighed and rubbed his face wearily. He started to shut the door but peered out at the last minute. “Sorry, doll.” Then he shut it completely.

Rey had no chance to even reply.

<>

Rey came up the stairs from a late-night study session with her friends Gwen and Rose. Crazy, vicious-sounding hammering drifted out of Adam’s apartment. It stopped for a moment. Rey paused at her door to open it.

“God-fucking-fuck!” Adam’s voice carried out into the hallway. Rey heard the sound of wood breaking and falling on the floor. Then a scream of pure rage. 

She stood stock still with the key in her hand. Sounds of breaking wood and Adam’s yells resounded out of his apartment again. Rey dropped her keys into her bag and went to Adam’s door. It was hanging open. She gently pushed the door to one side and saw him.

He was in work boots, jeans, and gloves. Nothing else. He swung a large sledgehammer at a wooden frame. It broke apart and fell with a crash. Rey automatically ducked, though the pieces didn’t come near her. Adam continued to beat the wood that landed on the floor, screaming “fuck.”

He must have felt her behind him because he turned at that moment. Rey sucked in a breath. He looked like a wild thing. His hair flew everywhere and stuck out from his head. He was covered with sweat and sawdust. His eyes flashed fire and his teeth were gritted. His arms were corded with muscles, and he held the sledgehammer up like he wanted to strike. He glared at Rey, looking like he might want to corner her. She wanted to take a step back—but stepped forward instead and glared back at him.

“You’re making too much fucking noise,” she said.

He lowered the sledgehammer. “I don’t fucking care,” he gritted. “I hate this. I hate it.”

“What the hell is it?” Rey poked a piece of wood with her toe. 

“It was,” he growled. “A Love Shack.” He paused. “Bay-hey-bee.”

Rey busted out laughing. Adam stared at her for a startled second. “You’re so crazy,” she said, wiping her eyes.

He leaned on his hammer. “Yeah, I am. I really am.”

“As long as you’re all right,” Rey said.

He nodded. “Sure. I do this for fun.”

“Seriously?” Rey frowned. He got so mad that it was ludicrous to think of him having fun building things.

“Yeah.” He tapped the hammer lightly against one giant boot. “Fun.”

“Okay. But maybe you need a different hobby,” she said.

“I play guitar, too.”

Rey nodded, thinking that too was a loud and obnoxious hobby. Maybe everything this guy did was the same—and he was simply a loud person. She lived next door to him. She closed her eyes.

“All right. Well, then. Thanks, thanks for checking on me, doll. I thought you were out so I did my hammering with you gone.”

“And I appreciate it, Adam,” Rey said sincerely. “Just don’t hurt yourself with that giant hammer.”

He gave her a jaunty salute. “I’m A-Okay, kid.”

Rey left him looking at the mess on the floor. He muttered “fucking fuck fuck” to himself as she shut the door.

<>

Rey wasn’t convinced she could live next door to this guy. She didn’t want to call and complain to the management company, but she was having some trouble with the noise and the mess. She found a trail of wood shavings outside her door one day. They were gone by the time she got home from classes, but still…

Wood dust hung in the air and danced in the sunlight coming through the window on the stairwell. The smell of wood glue wafted over to Rey’s apartment sometimes.

And the latest song drifting through the thin walls was appropriately enough “Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel. How Rey wished for a sledgehammer to bash her neighbor’s guitar after hearing the song for the umpteenth time.

She ran downstairs to talk to the guys that lived in the first-floor apartment. She hoped to talk to Ray, the guy she had met when she was looking at this place. But one of the other dudebros answered the door and raked Rey with an interested gaze.

“Hey, hey. You a new renter?” he asked.

“Yeah. I’m Rey,” she said.

“Welcome to the building,” he said. “I’m Poe. Another Ray, huh?” He smiled and Rey couldn’t help smiling back.

“R-E-Y, Rey. Not R-A-Y.”

“Ah,” Poe said. “Well, nice to meet you.”

“Listen, the guy upstairs?” Rey pointed above her head. “Is he kind of loud for you?”

Poe laughed. “Who? The original man? Yeah, Sackler’s a character all right. He has his moments. Right now, he seems to be on a woodworking kick. He’s a good guy, though.”

“I’m having trouble living next door to the sawing, hammering, and singing.” Rey felt a little stupid saying this, but it was true. “Can’t you hear it? How do you deal?”

“Oh, I’m not here that much and my roommates Ray and Finn are gone a lot, too. Find a study carrell in the library. Or buy some noise-canceling headphones. Sackler’s going to do what he does. He’ll calm down after a while.”

“He’s singing “Sledgehammer” non-stop,” Rey said.

“That’s perfect for him. He loves those 80s songs. He told me he’s building a love shack, whatever that means.”

Poe didn’t seem to register the seriousness of Rey’s complaint. “Yes, that’s fine, but he is so noisy about it,” she restated.

He blinked at her. “Oh, I see. Tell him to shut the fuck up.”

“I have,” Rey said.

“And?”

She chewed her lip. “He does for a little while then…”

“He forgets,” Poe finished. “Once he gets going on a play or something, he’ll be done. He’s just bored. Hey, nice to meet you. I gotta run.” Poe knocked his fist against the doorframe and began to close it.

“Really? Okay.”

“You’ll get used to Adam, don’t worry,” he said as he closed the door in Rey’s face.

<>

Rey could hear Adam quite clearly through her bedroom wall. She plotted out how their two apartments must have been laid out. Both had bathrooms next to each other in the back. Someone had clearly chopped up one larger bathroom to make two small ones and put a wall up in between. Then walls had been erected to make a bedroom—hers—and a living room—his. Each kitchen was next to the bathroom. Hers was in the back corner of the house; his in the front corner.

She could hear him taking a shower—and singing his latest song, in this case, “Sledgehammer.” He could likely hear her do the same, though she wasn’t much of a singer.

And she could hear him working on his hobby in the living room plain as day, when she was in her bedroom. The day after Adam destroyed his love shack, whatever that meant, Rey shoved her desk out of her bedroom into the living room in hopes of drowning out some of the louder renditions he produced. It helped a little, but she could still hear him from her living room when he got to pounding and sawing.

It all came to a head one night when Rey sat up in bed in her pajamas reading chapters for tomorrow’s lit class. She heard Adam singing and rustling around. He seemed to be working on another project. He sounded like he was hammering nails into the wall between them.

The banging stopped. Then it got louder as though he was swinging a…

“Sledgehammer! Why don’t you call my name! I’ll be your sledgehammer,” he sang and banged at the same time.

Fuck. He wasn’t really messing with the sledgehammer again. It was dangerous.

Rey jumped out of bed and banged on the wall between them. “Adam,” she shouted. “What the fuck are you doing?”

“Being your sledgehammer,” he rumbled. She heard him so clearly that he seemed like he was in the room with her.

“Stop,” she said.

“Can’t do it. Open up your fruitcakes. I’ll be your honeybee…” He sang it loud.

Suddenly, there was a great whack on the wall. Rey stepped back quickly. She was covered with a shower of drywall and paint flakes.

A giant hole appeared, and Adam’s shocked face came into view. “Fuck me. What happened?

“Jesus! You bashed a hole in the fucking wall!” Rey stood staring at the dust and crumbles of drywall on the floor of her bedroom.

Adam’s eyes were wide. “Holy fuck.” He grinned and then started laughing.

“This isn’t…” Rey snapped her mouth shut and breathed. She coughed and took a step back from the hole and the dust on the floor. “Funny.”

Adam sucked in his laughter. “You’re right. It’s not.”

“What. Will. You. Do?”

“I’ll come clean up the dust.” He moved away from the hole. She could see him moving pieces of wood. He was whistling.

“No, forget the dust, Adam,” Rey hollered into the hole. “I mean, how I am supposed to sleep here with this hole in the wall.”

He came back into view. “What do you mean?”

Rey looked at him. “There’s a hole in the wall and we can see each other. It’s fine for you. It’s in your living room. This is looking into my bedroom.”

Adam gazed at her for a second. “You think I’m going to watch you sleep or something?”

Rey lifted her chin. “You fucking well better not.”

He shook his head. “You’re so pretty, though. I’d like to watch you sleep.” He stared at her. “But I won’t.” He grinned and winked at her, just a tiny baby wink.

Rey looked stern. “Seriously. Don’t.”

“I’ll fix the hole,” he said. “Promise.”

“Now, Adam. I mean it. Right now.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He gave a cheerful salute and wandered out of sight. He had a piece of wood in his hand. He put it up to the hole for a moment. Then took it away.

“Good night,” he said and replaced the wood. Rey heard him tapping nails into place.

She sighed and went to the kitchen to find the broom and dustpan. She heard a knock on her door. No doubt it was Adam.

Sure enough, he stood in her doorway, taller than she remembered. He always surprised her with his size. He wore no shirt but had a pair of worn work gloves on. He carried a hammer and a square of wood.

“I’ll block up this side, too,” he said. He shook his hair out of his eyes. Wood shavings and dust drifted down to the floor. “Fuck, I’m shedding.”

Rey held up the broom. “I’m prepared.” She stepped aside and let him into the foyer. He walked into her bedroom. He placed the hammer, wood, and a handful of nails on the dresser by the entrance to the bathroom. He turned and held out his hands.

“I’ll sweep. I’m the asshole who created the mess.” he said. He took the broom and dustpan and swept up the mess of dust and pieces of drywall.

“I’ll dump it,” Rey said. She took the pan. When she returned, Adam had a piece of wood over the hole and nails in his mouth. He deftly pounded one after another in the wood.

“That’ll hold until I can patch the drywall,” he said. “Sorry, doll. I was fucking around too much with the sledgehammer. Man, I’m a fucking jerk.” He looked down at his feet and swayed a bit. Then he lifted his hands into claws and hollered. He shook his head back and forth and fell to the floor.

Rey thought he was having a fit of some kind.

“Adam?” She knelt down.

“I’m an asshole!” He rolled over into a ball. “I could’ve fucking hurt you.”

Rey had no idea what to say. “It’s okay,” she said, even though it wasn’t. Not really. 

He lay on his back and gazed up at her. “Okay. I won’t do it again. I can be more careful.” He sprang to his feet in a swift, sure motion.

“All fixed for the moment,” he said, like he hadn’t been rolling around on the floor.

“Great,” Rey said brightly.

She should start looking for a new place to live.

<>

When Rey looked at this apartment, Adam had not been home. She’d been shown around by a guy named Ray, who lived in the apartment downstairs, with Poe and Finn. He had the key and showed her around. He talked about the lease and had copies to sign if Rey wanted to take them with her. She could bring them back with the security deposit the next day. Which she did.

She originally thought Ray was owner of the building. She was wrong. When she read the lease, Rey discovered that the property owner was a management company called Sample Enterprises, LLC. 

After the sledgehammer incident, Rey stared at the number on the lease and considered her options.

Rey felt kind of bad calling the number to tell on her neighbor. She didn’t want to see him evicted. He was in the process of fixing the wall. He had pulled off the wood on his side and asked to come over to take hers down.

“I’m going to patch the hole,” he said, standing in her doorway, with no shirt on.

“Okay,” she said and let him in.

Adam pried the piece of wood off and measured the hole deftly with a tape measure. The tape sucked itself back in with a snap.

“Sorry again about the hole in the wall,” he said, staring at Rey with a sheepish look.

She chewed her lip. “Thanks. As long as you can mend it.”

He grunted and stretched. “Sure can, kid.”

Rey gestured toward the hole. “Are you going to lose your security deposit?”

He grinned at her. “Nah. It’s all good.”

Rey took a startled step backward. Adam Sackler’s smile lit up his long face. His low laugh sent a shiver of sexy awareness down her spine. She was in her bedroom with this tall guy with tools.

He was gazing at her. She lifted her chin and quirked an eyebrow at him.

“I’m done,” he said. He bent over and looked around the floor. Rey looked at his tight little ass for a moment. He was muscular everywhere and looked damn fine in his beat-up jeans. “I don’t think I dropped nails, but make sure you look before going barefoot over here.”

“Hmm,” Rey said.

Adam looked at her for a second. Then he strode out of the room without a backward glance. Rey watched his broad back and its rippling muscles. She shook herself.

She really couldn’t be looking at Adam Sackler. The sledgehammer.

She had to get the fuck out of here.

Rey went back to her living room and dialed the number on the lease. She heard the ringback tone and waited.

The phone was picked up. “Hi, there. Sample Enterprises,” a low voice answered. Rey heard something from Adam’s side of the building. He was talking, too. It distracted her.

“Hi, um, this is Rey Johnson,” she said quietly.

“Oh, hi, Rey,” the voice said. “Something you need?”

“Well.” She heard Adam’s voice again in the background. “I just wanted to let you know that, um, my neighbor accidentally, I think it was accidental, bashed a hole in my bedroom wall. I don’t mean to be picky but… he’s loud and now there’s a hole.”

Silence.

“Rey,” Adam called from the other side of the hole.

She called to Adam. “Sorry, on the phone.”

“Yeah, I know,” he called back.

“It’s me,” the voice said.

Rey heard the words in two places. She walked into her bedroom. Adam had the phone up to his ear and he was peering at her through the hole in the wall. Rey stared at him.

“Hi,” he said, shaking the phone at her. “You called me? I don’t know why, though. I’m right here and I’m coming back over to patch the wall.”

<>

“Um,” Rey said.

Adam stared at her through the hole in the wall.

“You’re the landlord?” Rey couldn’t seem to process the information. She felt disjointed.

He nodded.

“Okay,” Rey said. “All right.” She slowly disconnected her call.

“You don’t want to live here?” He shifted his body. He was bending over slightly to see through the hole.

Rey heard the hurt tone in his voice. Where did that come from? She felt a twinge of guilt.

“Listen, it’s not you,” Rey began.

“No, it _is_ me,” Adam said, pushing his face nearer the hole. “Whatever you do, don’t lie to save my feelings. I know I’m not a good neighbor. Just say it.”

Rey looked him square in the eye. “Adam, you’re not a good neighbor.”

“How am I a bad neighbor?” His eye contact never wavered.

Rey lifted her chin. “You’re noisy. You hammer and saw early in the morning and late at night. You bashed a hole in my wall while I was in my bedroom.”

“It was an accident,” Adam countered.

“You were swinging a sledgehammer and singing.”

Adam nodded. “I suppose.”

Rey laughed at the absurdity of that statement. “You suppose? No, it’s a fact. You did.”

“I’ll make it up to you,” Adam interrupted. “You can come to my play. I wrote it.”

“Uh, well…” Rey said slowly. It wasn’t what she expected. He wrote a play?

He ducked out of sight.

She sat on her bed and watched this tall, strange man patch the hole in her wall—carefully cutting the piece to fit, using wire mesh to make it stronger, mudding it up. His back had a light sheen of sweat and the muscles rippled as he worked. He hummed to himself lightly—sounded like “Sledgehammer.” Then he walked out to find the broom in her little kitchen closet. He swept the area and headed back to the kitchen to drop the dust into the trash can.

He came back into the room to pass a light hand over the patch. “Good as new. I’ll paint it later.” He surveyed the wall. “Could paint the whole wall for you.” He turned to look at Rey. “How’s that?”

“Good,” Rey said. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He paused. “Gonna get a Gatorade. Want one?”

“Sure. Why not?”

Rey followed Adam into his apartment and sat gingerly at his table amid tools and wood stacked everywhere. He passed her a plastic bottle and opened one for himself. He shoved the hair out of his eyes and sat on the couch.

He jumped up again. “I forget not to be noisy, but I really like you. Please don’t move out. Do you want me to paint the whole apartment?”

“No, it’s all right, Adam. Just tone down the noise, please.”

He sat back down. “I will. I’m done with the project right now. I think.”

“What were you making?” Rey was curious about this fellow, who seemed so different from anyone she’d ever met before.

“A bookshelf or a wardrobe. Or it could have been a fake doorway for my set. It was that for a minute. Then I couldn’t get it down to the theater without a truck and I have a bike.”

Rey pondered that statement. “You could borrow a truck,” she said.

He shook his head. “I don’t like most people. They’re fucking buffoons. Can’t ask them for a truck.” He paused. “You want to hear my song?”

“’Sledgehammer’?” Rey felt as though she’d heard it many times before. “I’ve been a captive audience for ‘Sledgehammer.’”

Adam looked at her. “I know. I’m getting better. I’d keep you captive if you want me to. We could hole up here and make it into a love shack, bay-hey-bee.”

Rey burst out laughing. “’Love Shack.’ You were singing that one for a while, too.”

Adam drew a guitar from behind the couch. “Yeah, but I like ‘Sledgehammer.’ It fits me better. All you have to do is call my name. And I’ll be your sledgehammer.”

He crooned the last words and began to play the song. His singing and playing were pretty good, Rey had to admit. While Peter Gabriel sang the song in a bright, happy way, Adam reimagined it slow and sexy. He watched Rey while he sang, like a promise to tear down walls, to be her everything and anything, if only she’d let him.

When Adam stopped singing, Rey gave him a round of applause. She really enjoyed the rendition of the song.

“What does it mean?” she asked.

Adam strummed a chord. “It means that sex can break down barriers when other communication fails. The sledgehammer is coming for you, doll.”

Rey locked eyes with Adam. “Is that right?”

His gaze grew more intense. “I’m good in bed. I like sex and I’ll make you come. Guaranteed.”

Rey sat back in her chair. “I wasn’t…” She paused. “You’re coming on to me like a fucking sledgehammer, Adam. You don’t have to be so forceful about everything.”

He paused and stared at her. She stared back. He shook his hair out of his eyes.

“Okay,” he said. “Okay. Sure. Sorry. I didn’t mean to bug you.” He sighed. “I like you. I’m a creep but I like you.”

Rey sighed. He wasn’t a bad sort of person. He was like an enthusiastic puppy. A loud puppy. Maybe they could be friends. She perched next to him on the couch.

“You’re not a creep. You’re… uh, lively,” Rey said. She patted his arm. It was hard and well-muscled. He caught her hand in his and squeezed it. As she watched, he brought her hand to his mouth and closed his eyes. He hummed a little and kissed her hand lightly. He let it go and opened his eyes. They were an unusual color, kind of amber brown.

“What color are your eyes?” Rey asked suddenly. She had no idea she was going to ask him that.

His brows lifted and he grinned. “Hazel or brown. Or whatever you want to call them.” He looked away for a moment. “Hey, if you come over here to this light.” He caught her hand again and pulled her toward a lamp on a side table. He turned it on and stuck his head near it. “I hear they turn green and brown.” He blinked at her and shifted his head.

In fact, Adam’s eyes did turn a bit green in the light—with a ring of brown on the outside of his pupil. 

“Damn,” Rey said. “You’re right.”

“Let me see yours. What color are they?”

He peered into her eyes.

“Hazel but with more green than brown.” She tilted her head to show him her eyes in the light.

“Yeah,” he said. “We’re both hazel—brown hazel and green hazel. We match.” He grinned broadly and fluttered his eyelashes at Rey.

She busted out laughing. He was ridiculous.

“Hey.” He jumped up again like a piston. “Come to my play. Would you?”

Rey hesitated. “I have a lot of work…”

He looked crushed and pressed his lips together. “Yeah, I get it. Sure.”

“No,” Rey said. “I don’t mean it like that. I just…” She stopped. She did mean it like that. He was kind of a bizarre guy, and she didn’t know what she would be in for if she went to his play. Maybe he would think it was a date.

“Yeah, fuck,” he said softly. “Don’t lie to me. Just don’t. I get it.” He turned his back on her. “I’ll see you later. I’ll keep the noise down.”

“Adam,” Rey said softly.

“Bye,” he said without turning around. He picked up a piece of wood and a tape measure.

Rey left and felt like a shit. He was right, though; she shouldn’t lie to him and pretend something that she didn’t feel.

<>

Adam Sackler made barely any noise. He did zero woodworking, no singing, and seemed to be out a lot. She sometimes heard him bounding up or down the stairs early in the morning or late at night. Rey tried to breathe a sigh of relief about the situation as she studied, but she did feel guilty.

Her friends told her she was being ridiculous.

“He was being a huge nuisance,” Rose argued, while they sat at a table for lunch at the university. They were between grad classes.

Gwen sipped her drink and agreed. “That kind of thing is so rude to do. As a responsible building owner, he should know better.”

“I know,” Rey said, playing with her salad. “But he’s kind of quirky. And I feel like I’ve stifled his creativity somehow.”

“Better his than yours,” Gwen muttered.

“Why in the world would you think that? Why defend this guy?” Rose sounded annoyed.

Rose did have a point. Rey sighed. “I guess you’re right. He’s bugged me from the start.”

“Do not…” Rose pointed a finger at Rey. “Do not get sucked into feeling sorry for this fucker. He’s a grown man and doesn’t need rescuing or excusing. I know that look, Rey Johnson. Seen it on your face a million times. Right before you go down some sort of romance rabbit hole.”

Rey rolled her eyes. “Well, he’s sort of… sweet.”

“No,” Rose barked. “Bad Rey. Bad girl. Let it go.”

Gwen pulled out the school’s newspaper. “All right, time for a subject change. Newspaper’s out. Let’s see what bullshit they’re printing.” She opened it with a snap. “I can’t believe they still waste paper and ink like this.”

Rey eyed Rose who shot more warning looks and mutterings her way.

“Hey, wait,” Gwen said suddenly. “Is this your boy?”

She turned the page around and laid it on the table. Rey saw a photo of Adam Sackler above the fold. The headline read: _Alum Adam Sackler is “Star Material_.”

“Shit,” Gwen said. “He’s fucking hot. Look at him. I didn’t know he was so good looking.”

Rey had to admit the photo did Adam justice: pouty lips, tousled hair, sexy eyes.

Rose gawked. “This is Sledgehammer?”

Rey met her eyes. “Yep. Hits a bit different now, doesn’t it?”

“Fuck,” Rose said. “He’s a hot boy.”

“I’ve seen him with his shirt off,” Rey said. “Now you get it.”

“Fuck, yeah,” Gwen said. “Worth putting up with the noise for that face.”

Rose snorted. “It isn’t.”

Rey looked at Rose. “He’s got a fine ass, too. Like, really tight and muscular. He bent over and…”

“Read the damn article, Gwennie,” Rose interrupted.

Gwen cleared her throat and read:

_Actor and playwright Adam Sackler didn’t think he would ever graduate. He credits the Theatre Program for helping him succeed. And succeed he has._

_With a freshly-minted, one-man show under his belt, Sackler may be able to write his own ticket to the Theater Scene in town. He’s a force to be reckoned with._

_The reviews are in and Sackler’s ‘Star Material’ show is a hot commodity. It tells the story of a neurodiverse individual making his way through a system that privileges linear thinking and organization, something Sackler himself struggles with. “I’m ADHD as hell,” he says. “I have to move to keep my sanity.” He notes that ADHD doesn’t have to be a deficit. “I hate that term, ADHD,” he claims. “D is for deficit. How about diversity instead? It’s not a disorder or a deficit. It’s selective attention and hyper-creativity.”_

_Sackler’s amazing performance as Snail, the bold narrator of the piece, shows both the problems and the joys of being a neurodiverse person in a neurotypical world._

_When asked about future project, Sackler notes that he plans to break down more stereotypes. “Going to bash them all with my sledgehammer,” he jokes. He’s also a carpenter who owns a rental property nearby._

_We look forward to hearing more from this rising star._

Gwen stopped reading. “Well, that must explain a lot,” she said to Rey.

“It does. I had no idea.”

Rose rolled her eyes. “So what? What does that mean? He’s still being rude to Rey by pounding away at odd hours. Having ADHD doesn’t give someone license to be a jerk.”

Gwen slapped the table. “Yeah, Rose, it’s inconvenient as hell to have a disability that puts people out. At least Rey can understand what he’s doing and why. She knows that he’s not doing it on purpose and that he struggles with remembering. Maybe she will have to move because it’s not going to get better with him. He can try, but he might not be able to stop without reminders from Rey.”

“She shouldn’t have to babysit her fucking landlord,” Rose stated.

“But I can have some compassion,” Rey said. “And maybe help him set up reminders or something. I’m neurotypical. Maybe he just doesn’t know what to do.”

She watched Rose and Gwen exchange glances. “What?”

Gwen leaned over to her. “Baby girl, I don’t think you’re neurotypical.”

Rey stared at Rose and Gwen. “How so? I’m not banging sledgehammers around.”

Rose messed around with her phone for a second. “ADHD without the H: Characterized by distraction, hyperfocus for long periods of time, daydreaming, drifting, short attention span for non-preferred tasks.”

“That’s you, Rey.” Gwen patted her arm. “We have to snap you out of hyperfocus or you get lost.”

“I’ve never been tested. I’m not diagnosed with something,” Rey protested.

“Has it been an impairment?” Rose asked, scrolling her phone. “They say here that the difference between just being a daydreamer and having ADHD is impairment. Do you have trouble with work or keeping things organized?”

Rey slowly nodded. She could be organized with great effort, but it took all her concentration to do it. She couldn’t have distractions, like Adam Sackler, nearby.

She looked up. “I can’t live in that apartment. He is too distracting with his presence.”

“Can you break your lease?” Gwen asked.

“Not without losing my deposit and I don’t have the funds to start over,” Rey said.

“Talk to your landlord. He might be…”

Rey shook her head. “No, that’s just wrong. I can’t take advantage of him like that. I’ll figure something else out.”

<>

Rey snatched a copy of the paper before heading home. She heard nothing in Adam’s apartment to suggest he was home. She realized that she wanted to see his play after all and checked to see if it was still running. It was.

When she went into her bathroom, Rey heard some splashing from Adam’s side. She heard his low voice singing and, improbably, a little giggle. Then another. She thought he might have a woman in there with him. She pressed her ear against the wall. The singing continued. The giggle sounded again. It was a baby, not a woman.

Adam Sackler had a baby in his bathroom?

She heard a bigger splash and Adam’s rumble. “Oopsy daisy, kiddo.” More baby laughter.

He was giving a child a bath and making them laugh.

Rey closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the cool wall. Of course, he was. He was a sledgehammer with a heart. He tore down walls and wandered in with his sexy ass and hazel eyes. Fuck.

Now, this. 

Sledgehammer knew how to take care of an infant and cared enough to do it. He was a gentle, wild beast of a man.

The combination left Rey weak in the knees. This man would fight off predators, hunt food, and protect his mate and his young.

She stepped away from the wall. She could fight off her own predators, hunt her own fucking food, and protect her own damn self. And her mate. Though she didn’t have one.

She didn’t need one.

Adam started up his usual song, a little softer than before. “I wanna be… your sledgehammer. Why don’t you call my name? Let me be… your sledgehammer.”

Rey might have let out a small moan at that point.

Five minutes later, Rey heard the door to Adam’s apartment open. She nipped over to her door to peek out, like the voyeur she’d become.

Adam was wearing the baby on his chest—the child gazed up at his chin and reached for his little beard. “Oh no,” he said, holding the baby’s hand down. “Sample can’t yank uncle’s beard. Owie ow.”

He suddenly looked at Rey’s door and spotted her watching. She stood staring at him, debating whether or not to shut the door and pretend she wasn’t home.

“Hi,” he said.

She opened the door. “Hi.”

Neither said anything. The baby, who wanted to be the center of attention, grabbed Adam’s beard and pulled.

“Ow, fuck,” he said. “Girlfriend! You need to stop that.”

The baby babbled back at him.

“No thank you, Sample,” he replied. “Sample, this is my neighbor Rey.” He turned himself around so Rey could see the little girl’s face. “This is my niece. Her mother is my sister. She stays with me sometimes.”

“Your sister?” Rey asked, smiling at the baby. “Hi, Sample.”

“No, Sample stays with me sometimes. Long story,” he said. “I gotta take her back to her dad. If he’s sober.” Adam rolled his eyes.

Rey looked at him. “Part of the long story.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I might end up with custody full time, though it’s hard to say who’s the best candidate to take her. I’m a single guy drumming up acting gigs for a living.”

Rey smiled at him. “You seem to be doing a fine job. I’m impressed.” She paused and bit her lip. “Adam…”

“Hey, got to run,” he said lightly. “See you later.”

“Can I come to your play?” Rey asked as he thundered down the steps.

He looked up. “Free country.”

Then he left Rey standing there at the top of the stairs.

<>

Of course, Rey thought bitterly, the fucking play was amazing. Adam was incredible onstage. It was a thoughtful, funny, and bittersweet story of a young man coming of age and accepting his neurodiversity.

Rey cried at the end of the stunning performance, and she wasn’t the only one snuffling in the dark. Rey couldn’t decide if she wanted to go backstage and say hello or just slink away and wish she had been nicer to the star of the show.

She remembered the relatives she lived with judging everyone and everything they saw. They judged her and found her lacking simply because she was a drain on them when her parents died.

Like Sample, she thought. Except she didn’t think Adam would be that kind of person.

He might be a judgy fuck in some situations, but he seemed to genuinely like his niece. And maybe he could learn to like Rey again, even though she had judged him.

Standing on the precipice of indecision, Rey rubbed her forehead and slowly walked toward the lobby.

“Hey, kid!” Someone shouted behind her. “You showed up!”

Rey turned. Adam barreled down the aisle toward her. He took her by the shoulders, leaned in, and kissed her cheek. His beard and mustache tickled her face.

She looked into his warm eyes and saw him smiling at her. He had makeup on, including a bit of eyeliner. Rey drew in a breath. It looked so hot on him. She didn’t even know what to say or how to start.

“Did you enjoy it?” He gazed at her.

“So much, Adam. I loved it,” she breathed. She meant it wholeheartedly.

His hands slipped down her shoulders to grasp her hands. “Good. See you at home? I have to make an appearance at a little party, but I fucking hate those things, so I won’t be long.” He stopped and looked at her. “Unless… you want to come with me?”

“I hate those things, too.” Rey laughed. “Misery loves company. I’ll go.”

“Better to share the pain,” Adam said.

“I can get a headache and then you can use me as an excuse to leave,” Rey said.

“Ah, perfect. I’m going to wash up. Come on.” He grasped her hand and pulled her backstage with him.

In a concrete-walled dressing room, Adam stripped off his shirt and washed up at a nearby sink. Rey tried not to stare as he dried himself on a small towel. He looked so good, so huge and handsome. She drew a breath and thanked the ADHD gods that he didn’t remember disliking her.

Adam pulled on a new shirt and took Rey’s hand again as they left the theater building.

<>

The party was in someone’s home. Rey didn’t catch much of the introductions or conversation since it was so noisy. She clung to Adam’s big hand like a lifeline. He introduced her as his neighbor and friend to a lot of different people, most of whom were drunk or stoned, it seemed.

After a short time, Adam tugged Rey close and said in her ear, “Let’s go home.” She nodded.

As they walked back to their apartment, Adam jumped around next to her as they walked. He leapt up to swat leaves on high branches. He swirled in circles. He was full of energy.

Rey laughed.

“I know. I’m crazy,” Adam said, swinging himself in front of her. “I get wired by acting. I’ll crash in a little while.”

“No problem,” Rey said. “I’m just glad we’re not at that party.”

Adam gave her a side-eye. “Why?”

“Too overwhelming and noisy,” Rey said. “I prefer quiet gatherings. Smaller get-togethers of a few people I know.”

“Me, too.” He stopped and stood in front of her. “Some ADHD people like the stimulation. Some don’t. I don’t.”

“Nor do I,” Rey said. “I think I have ADHD without the H.”

“Perfect,” Adam whispered to himself.

He leaned in suddenly and pressed his mouth against Rey’s without warning. She stood rooted, engulfed in the sensation of his soft lips, so soft, so full, and his prickly mustache. Then his warm tongue found its way into her mouth and they were kissing hungrily right there on the sidewalk.

Rey did not regret it. She slipped her arms around Adam’s big shoulders and he touched her neck with one huge paw.

When they broke apart, Rey smiled at Adam. He looked a bit worried.

“Sorry, I forgot to ask first. Are you okay with that?”

“No,” she said, laughing.

He raised his eyebrows. “No? You kissed me like you wanted to eat me alive.”

“Yes, I do,” Rey said.

He rolled his eyes and tucked her up under his arm. “We have to talk about this lying thing you’ve been doing.”

“All right, but can I say first that I’m sorry for being so judgmental?”

“No, you were right. I was wrong. I’m a horrible neighbor. Don’t apologize for asserting your rights. Tell me when I fuck up.”

Rey stopped on the steps of their stoop. She turned to face Adam. “Well, I hurt you. And I apologize for that. I judged you as a …” she searched for the word.

“Weirdo,” he supplied. Then he stared at her in his intense way. “Agree with me. That’s what you thought. I know myself and I know how people see me.”

Rey nodded. “I’m sorry for judging you before getting to know you better.”

He pursed his lips. “I’m not an easy person to like sometimes.”

“Can I try to like you?” Rey asked.

“Sure,” he said. “I like you already.”

Rey leaned in and kissed Adam lightly. He kissed her back. “I know. And I like you, too.”

“Want to show me?” Adam asked softly. “I’ll sing for you again.”

“You’re going to be my sledgehammer?” Rey looped her arm in his as they opened the door.

“Yeah. And your honeybee.”

They walked up the stairs together.

“Build me a love shack?” Rey asked at the top of the stairs.

“This is a love shack, bay-hey-bee,” Adam said. “My love shack.”

And he unlocked his door.

<>

Rey fell into Adam’s big bed and let him pull her clothes off with great enthusiasm. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once. Rey was captivated by his attention—he focused on her completely. As promised, Adam was an inventive, vocal, wild lover. She found herself pounded into the mattress by a great big beast, who watched her with stormy hazel eyes. He stopped to roll her over and eat her out from behind, growling into her cunt like he had found a feast of great delights. She didn’t know she needed such energy in her life until it was there in front of her. He whispered the filthiest words in her ear and exhorted her to enjoy his various attributes. She did enjoy them fully, grasping him closer as he fucked her through the most intense orgasm of her life. She called his name over and over while he found his own completion in her arms.

Afterwards, Rey drifted off to sleep with this big man beside her. He snuggled her close and breathed deeply beside her.

At that moment, she knew she would never go back to neurotypicals again.

<>

**Epilogue**

Adam stood beside the wall, sledgehammer in hand, eye protection on.

Rey still thought he looked like a bug—he was quite ridiculous and adorable. He grinned at her and raised the big implement of destruction.

“Really, Adam, before you do this, you should think about it some more.” Rey stayed nearby, holding Sample on her hip.

“Why?”

“Because, you nut, once you do it, it’s done and you can’t go back.”

He lowered the hammer. “I’m only taking out a section of wall to make the Love Shack bigger.”

The plan was to open a large doorway between the apartments and make them one big apartment. Rey had rolled her eyes at Adam for the lost revenue. He said he didn’t give a shit and wanted the extra room instead.

“This can’t be good for Sample,” Rey said, who was squirming to get down. “No, baby, you can’t get near Adam right now.”

“Maybe take her downstairs to see Uncle Poe?”

“All right,” Rey said. “Wait for me. I want to watch.”

He laughed. “Of course you do. Is this a sex thing?”

Rey huffed. “No.” She paused. “Yes… so what?”

He did a little hip thrust dance for her. “Love Shack, bay-hey-bee… Sledgehammer….”

“Never mind,” she said drily, switching Sample to her other hip. “I’m over it.”

She deposited Sample with Poe, who looked a bit surprised at being asked to impromptu babysit a toddler. “You fucking Sacklers owe me,” he called.

Rey waved a thank you and heard him mumbling about ADHD people and their lack of planning.

She bounded back upstairs.

“Hit me with your best shot,” Rey called to Adam.

He lifted the sledgehammer. “That’s a totally different song.”

“Whatever. Fire away,” Rey answered.

He grinned at her. “I wanna be… your sledgehammer,” he sang. And took a giant swing.

**Author's Note:**

> Just want to add a note about neurodiverse people from my experience (since I am one). Adam Sackler may look like he's unrepentant and manipulative, but that's not necessarily true, at least in my story. A lot of us neurodiverse people have trouble remembering what bothers other people. We don't intend to be annoying on repeat--and we truly are sorry when we screw up, yet again. Many of us beat ourselves up for making poor decisions or doing things that bother our loved ones. And many of us try to do better--and simply can't. Just today, I did something I do consistently that annoys the people around me. I swore I wouldn't bang the sledgehammer on the wall, metaphorically speaking. And I did it anyway. Cut the neurodiverse people in your life a break--and if you are part of Team Different, give yourself a break, too. You are one of us.  
> Finally, if you like neurodiverse Sackler, check out the others in the series, especially The Sackler Brain. Thanks for reading.


End file.
